


I Guess That's our Red Paladin Now

by Isayuku



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alien Keith (Voltron), Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Blood and Injury, Eventual Fluff, Family, Friendship, Galra Keith (Voltron), Gen, How Do I Tag, Hurt Keith (Voltron), Hurt/Comfort, Infection, My First Fanfic, Sentient Voltron Lions, Swearing, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-28
Updated: 2019-04-06
Packaged: 2019-09-29 11:57:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,891
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17202992
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Isayuku/pseuds/Isayuku
Summary: After failing his mission to free the Red Lion, Keith crash landed on an -to him- unknown planet.Things get really interesting as a Lion exactly like Red shows up...just in Blue.Driven by curiousity, Keith decides to check it out, not knowing which mess he'd be getting himself into...That doesn't mean that he'll regret it though// Yeah, I'm so nervous about posting this- my writing isn't the best, neither is my English X'DI hope it's readable- //





	1. Curiousity Killed the Cat

**Author's Note:**

> Hello everyone ^^
> 
> Like I have mentioned before, English isn't my first language and I'm still learning, but I hope you still enjoy reading  
> -  
> Keith looks fully Galra in this story btw,  
> but he's still only half Galra.  
> //I gave him fluffy cat-like ears cuz that's adorable//  
> 

 

The first thing Keith felt as he was pulled out of unconsciousness was a stinging pain in his head.  
It throbbed together with his heartbeat and got more and more unbearable as the time passed…  
He groaned as the rest of his body slowly began to wake up as well, more pains adding to his murderous headache…  
He opened his eyes and pushed himself up from the Pod's console.  
His arms where shaking and he could feel the countless bruises that where currently forming all over his body.  
He looked around, his eyes hurting from the bright sunlight.

After a while he got used to the light and he was finally able to properly take in his surroundings.  
The first thing he saw was the broken front window of his pod and a dark cloud of smoke ascended from the front of it.  
The console was still looking okay, yet most of the displays had broken and most importantly, his navigator didn't seem to work… Vrenneck.  
Keith didn't even need to consider fixing it, it was complete trash at this point.

The pod took two shoots during his escape from the Empire's cruiser and then he thought flying through an asteroid field to loose them with a pod that had been shot was a good idea -spoiler warning, it wasn't-  
He ended up almost crashing against the asteroids more than once,  
But he still somehow managed to loose the fighters and ended up…here …  
Wherever 'here' is.

He sighed and rubbed his aching head.  
Well, that's what he gets for being cocky.  
He heard an all too familiar rumbling in the back of his head and rolled his eyes with a small smile…  
He forgot, there was also Red, the gigantic space lion he had saved a few Phoebs ago… to their dismay though, the Empire was able to recapture her while Keith was busy fighting off a bunch of bounty hunters…

He tried saving her, but he had failed, he was figured out fairly quick and only barely escaped and only because Red was urging him too.  
Him stealing Red and now trying it again is also the reason literally the entire Galra Empire was after him right now.  
Yet, he didn't regret that decision, Red was always there for him and kept him company, encouraging him and just being there for him like no other had before…it made him feel all warm inside everytime he thought about it.

So it wasn't even up to consideration if he would save Red or not.

Another, more urgent growl caught his attention and he closed his eyes for a moment.  
He felt Red's worry and smiled apologetically.  
' I'm okay, girl ' he said to her, opening his eyes again and beginning to climb out of the Pod.  
Red let out a relieved purr and Keith grinned at that.  
She was so worried all the time…though this time it was probably justified, Keith himself wasn't sure if he was going to make it to a planet before the entirety of his oxygen would've run out of his pod (they shot a giant hole into it!), but luckily he did.

As he stepped out of the pod he stretched his arms and legs, enjoying the feeling of the grass under his feet.  
It's been a while since he last visited such a green planet, most of the ones he had visited where rather rocky and sandy, the only thing growing there being cacti and trees without much green.  
This planet though, there was green wherever he looked, numerous tall trees surrounding him and he could hear the wildlife all around himself.  
The air smelled fresh and there was a hint of salt in it…there was probably some kind of ocean nearby...  
Maybe he could hunt for fish later...  
A small rustling of leaves made him jerk up, his ears flicking towards where the sound had originated from.

He looked at the bush for a while, his hand hovering over his mother's Blade…  
He didn't call out and instead approached the bush carefully…  
Suddenly a small person jumped out of it, startling Keith into falling backwards and backing away quickly, grabbing his blade and holding it towards the person…  
Keith relaxed a bit as he saw a small Alien, he has never seen this one's kind before but they where actually kinda cute.  
They where, like mentioned, quiet small (and that means something if the short Galra says that)  
They had something like a horn grow out of their head, their skin was a soft pink and two marks crowled their way up the person's cheeks…  
They held a small knife towards Keith but their hands where just awkwardly holding it and the person was shaking, apparently they weren't pretty experienced with fighting.  
„ who are you, and what are you doing here?" They- no, She asked loudly.  
Keith took his blade down and tugged it away, he didn't sense any danger from the small Alien so he just tried reasoning with her.  
„ I just crash landed here, I mean no harm" he said, staying down, not wanting to hover.  
The girl's eyes looked over to the Pod and then back to Keith.  
„ you do not?" She asks suspiciously to which Keith only shook his head.  
„ no, I will not bother you or your kind, I'll just stay for as long as I have too" he replied and the small girl seemed to accept it, now lowering her weapon and curiously approaching him.  
Keith was, to say the least, suprised as the girl looked him over, not a single glint of anger or hate gleaming in her eyes, just curiousity and a little bit of mistrust.  
He wondered if she'd never heard of the Galra before…  
He wouldn't be surprised now that he thought about it, the planet was literally in the middle of nowhere!  
Keith looked at her and tried his best to smile without showing his canines.  
„ so…who are you? And where exactly am I?" He asks as politely as possible.  
He knew he was far away from where he usually spent most of his days…yet where exactly was still a mystery to him.  
The small girl looked up at him „ oh? M-my name is Kizra, I am a Arusian warrior! and this is planet Arus"  
She informed, her voice held pride in it.  
Keith looked around and his eyes fixed onto something he hadn't even noticed before…  
There was a large outcropping mountain and on top was something that glimmered white…it reminded Keith of a ship…  
He looked at the Aurusian and pointed towards it.  
„ what's that?" He asked, returning his gaze towards it.  
Kizra followed his eyes „ we believe it's where the Lion Goddess houses… that's why we decorated the cliff with carvings of her, so she wouldn't get angry"  
Keith nodded, only halfway listening.  
Curiousity bloomed in his chest, he felt kinda drawn to the place…similar to when he first met Red…  
„ stranger? Are you okay?" Kizra asked, pulling on his arm.  
Keith looked down to her and shook his head, clearing his mind.  
„ oh, yeah…yeah I'm fine" he muttured.

Suddenly there was another presence…  
One that was scarily similar to Red's…  
Keith looked around and then he saw a familiar form fly through the sky, a Lion.  
This wasn't Red though…the lion was blue, and seemed bigger than Red.  
He watched as it flew towards the weird mountain and the…ship, castle?…whatever that on top of it was.  
He heard the rustling of leaves once more and as he looked around the Arusian was gone…  
She probably got scared, he thought as he returned his eyes towards the Lion.  
He sighed as he gave in to his curiousity and made his way towards the outcropping.

  
**\- Time skip -**

Climbing up the cliff was harder than expected, especially with his whole body aching thanks to his crash landing, but the curiousity kept him going.  
He had to find out more about that Lion, it was probably connected to Red in some way.  
He looked up, sighing in relief as he noticed that there wasn't much Left to climb.  
„ Almost there" he mumbled to himself as he pulled himself up.  
Suddenly the lion let out a loud roar, catching him completely off guard.  
He almost let go in suprise and looked up, the thing on the cliff began glowing and he heard voices…  
He quickly climbed up the rest of the cliff and collapsed as he finally reached the top.  
Damn, this really drained his energy…  
He took a few deep breaths and pushed himself up, carefully sneaking along the bushes that where decorating the, what he assumed was actually a castle's, entrance.  
He crouched down behind a rock and glanced over it, checking his surroundings for the people the voices he had heard earlier belonged too, but he didn't see anything or anyone except the open entrance to the castle…

They probably went inside then, it was his chance to take a closer look at the Lion.  
He stood up and walked over to the Lion, he felt it's Quintessence and compared it to Red's.  
The blue lion's Quintessence was calmer, more relaxed and proud where Red's was like a raging fire.  
He carefully brushed over the lions front paw.  
„ just what are you…" he mumbled to himself as he walked around the lion once.  
It looked like he was right, the lion was taller than Red and built a bit differently, yet most features where the same.

He glanced over to the Castle entrance…  
His mind yelled at him not to put a foot in there, it was unknown territory, he was weakened from the crash and would probably loose a fight, and he didn't even know who was in there…  
He ignored it and carefully walked towards the entrance, the lights where on in the inside and lit up the dark hallways…  
maybe he'd find something about the Lions, maybe there are more of them.  
Determined he walked through the hallways…  
The way the Castle was built was definitely something he hadn't seen before, the light metal and beautiful accents, illuminated by the blue light on the walls gave the whole castle a friendly feel,  
The places he had seen before where mostly either dark grey or black with purple accents.  
He looked around, following his instincts...  
He was lead into something that looked like a emergency Pod bay.  
His eyes brightened at that.  
He could get to Red! These work for sure if the lights do, he could grab one and find out the cruisers last location and then he'd save Red, but this time he wouldn't fail.

Suddenly he could hear a soft humming and breathing behind him and his instincts yelled at him to move.  
He did and jumped to the side, avoiding something that looked a lot like a grappling hook, and landed on his feet  
He looked up at his attackers and hissed.  
„what are you doing here, Galra!" A female voice yelled, and as Keith looked at her he actually recoiled a bit.  
It was…impossible, there was an Altean right in front of him, her cold blue eyes piercing right through him and he sensed the anger in them…  
He watched the other two people out of his peripheral vision, the smaller one held the grappling hook thing, pointing it at Keith.  
They had messy sand coloured hair and wore a pair of strange looking glasses…  
the other was taller, even taller than Keith himself.  
He seemed to be older, dark hair with a tuft of white in the front and a long scar across his nose…  
And his arm was glowing in an all too familiar purple glow…Galra tech.  
Keith backed away further, he wasn't strong enough for a fight, but it looked like he had to…

  
He carefully brought his hand to his belt, searching for his blade…  
„ Talk! Where you trying to steal the black lion?" The Altean pushed and Keith growled at her ( it wasn't very loud and probably sounded pathetic compared to the adult Galra he had met but eh, he'll grow)  
He grasped his blade as he finally found it's hilt and pulled it out, activating it in the process.  
He didn't hesitate and ran towards the man with the Galra tech, he pushed him aside and dodged the swing of the Altean's arm.  
He jumped back up and blocked the man's prosthetic with his blade, grunting as he felt the energy drain from his tired arms.  
He took all the energy he had left and jumped back, but then he felt something around his leg and he was on the ground quicker than he could process it.  
He began trying to tear his foot away from the grappling hook that had captured his ankle, growling in frustration at it not working.  
He tried it one more time, violently pulling his leg towards himself and the small person stumbled forward and loosened her grip on the weapon.  
Keith slipped his ankle out of the rope and was just quick enough to stand back up and avoid another one of the Altean's punches and just barely dodged the Galran prosthetic once more as the small one charged at him out of nowhere.  
He wasn't fast enough and her weapon (when had it changed?) Sliced through his arm, making him hiss in pain.  
He backed away to avoid the attacks and began running, as fast as he could.  
His injured leg pulsed in rhythm to his heartbeat and he was clearly loosing energy.  
He was becoming dizzy but he wouldn't give up, nope, he won't be a captive again.  
He sped up, aiming for the exit of the castle, he was just lucky that he was good at remembering these kind of things.  
He heard the footsteps after him, they where approaching quickly but he was already out and dropped from the cliff, quickly climbing down.  
He missed one of the outcroppings in his hurry and slipped down the cliff, damn his tiredness.  
He landed on another outcropping, a bigger one this time.  
He panted in pain and exhaustion, but the sound of the voices on top of the cliff made him pull himself together and climb down the rest, not once looking back.  
He dissapeared into the forest and ran as far as he could before the exhaustion managed to take over.  
His head begann Spinning and everything became numb.  
He fell over, just laying there and panting…  
Slowly, very slowly the threatening pain turned into numbness as he felt Red's warmth tear him into unconsciousness…  
She purred soothingly and Keith didn't try to fight her…


	2. (almost) Reunited

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The paladins make their way to retrieve the other lions while Keith tries to manage with his new situation-
> 
> ______________________
> 
> Sorry for being a bit late!  
> This chapter also feels kinda rushed so I apologize for that-  
> But hey- it has art!   
> X'D

 

Allura sighed deeply as they made their way back to the hangar for the pods.  
This was rather worrying, there was a Galra here on Arus and neither she nor Coran had even known…  
Who knew maybe he was just about to try and steal the Blue or even the Black Lion!  
They definitely had to do something about that…  
Not only because of the danger he presents to the Castle of Lions, but also because of the safety of the local folks of Arus, the Arusians.

  
Who knew to what this, admittedly very small, Galra was capable of after all.

  
But this had to wait until the others would return from their missions to receive the other two Lions.  
She looked at Shiro and Pidge, both seeming a bit more hesitant about leaving her and Coran behind on themselves after what happened.  
„ we'll be fine, don't worry about us" she reassured them with a smile.  
Shiro sighed but nodded „ Okay, we'll be back soon, we'll try to hurry" he answered before turning to the Pod and entering it, Pidge doing the same after waving goodbye to Allura.

  
The princess watched as the Pod left and then mader her way back to the bridge.  
She had to tell Coran about the unexpected encounter with the Galra and then she'd have to keep an eye on the camera's so the Galra wouldn't be able to just sneak in again... though she doubted such a stupid action after seeing the Galra almost falling down the entire mountain, but you can never be too sure.  
She also had to form another wormhole for the Paladins and check in with Hunk and Lance to make sure they weren't dead yet…  
She sighed, it was still hard for her to believe that these humans where supposed to be the next Generation of paladins, they had now experience in fighting (except Shiro of course) and would have to work hard to become a good team...

  
She believed in them though, she knew they could do this.

  
**-Time skip-**

  
A few Varga later everyone was back together.  
Lance and Hunk have managed to get the Yellow lion back while Pidge and Shiro got back the green one. (No one died or got injured to Allura's suprise)  
Only one more to find; Red.

Allura was able to finally track down the coordinates of the Red lion, to their 'luck' it was on the same Galra ship that has been making it's way towards them anyway.  
As they began arguing about their next action it quickly turned into a fight between the Paladins, one side wanting to leave while the other wanted to stay and fight.

For Allura this was just another reminder on how much they still had to learn.

They ended up staying, Allura wouldn't give up that easily, even though the paladins where still new and had to learn a lot about working together and fighting in general (they also where one paladin short, so no Voltron for now), she was confident that they could beat the Galra ship.  
But first things first, retrieving the Red lion.  
Sendak's threatening transmission has made it clear that time was ticking, but it also caused Shiro to get an idea for how they'll get the Red Lion.  
So…that's what they'll be doing.

The plan was easy enough, Hunk and Lance would play bait, and while Sendak's busy with them, Shiro, Pidge and Allura would sneak into the Ship to find the Red Lion and hopefully convince it to come with them.  
All they could do now was hope that the Lion was having a good day today.

\------------------------------

It was dark…

very dark…

He heard guns and shouts in the distance, yet he didn't feel like he was in any danger…the opposite actually, he felt safe and it was warm.

  
As the darkness finally faded into a clear picture he didn't see the green trees and blue sky he had fallen unconscious too anymore, instead he saw something alike of a Hangar…it was dark and purple accents crept along the walls… this was all the hints he needed to put the pieces together...

This was a Galra ship!

  
He noticed that he was far above the ground, a familiar red barrier around him.

  
„ Red lion of Voltron, I've come to bring you back to where you truly belong"

  
He looked down and saw the Altean from earlier, she held out a hand against the barrier.  
He suddenly heard Red growl…  
She was angry.  
the Altean seemed to get nervous, shifting from one leg to the other, it was understandable…her presence wouldn't be a secret for ever.  
It was just a question of time until the first bunch of sentries would run into the hangar.

  
„ listen, we don't have much time. You have to come with us!" She tried.

  
Red roared loudly, making the Altean flinch together.  
He couldn't talk, but he was still connected to Red, their minds where linked to eachother…

  
'go, it's safer with them than here…besides, we'll be closer together again'

he told her in his thoughts.  
Red growled in disagreement,

_She's one of the ones that hurt you_

Red said, making him groan.

' Red, this is not the time for being stubborn! Let her take you with her, there you can pout all day…besides, I wouldn't have to come here myself and risk injury if you'd go with her... you also wouldn't let me look through your eyes if you wouldn't want my opinion on this too'

The lion was quiet for a while, seemingly thinking about his words.  
Then after a little pause she huffed,

_Fine_

She answered grumpily,  
he let out a sigh of relief, he was glad that he managed to get Red to listen to him…he knew that she could be stubborn…like, reeeaaaally stubborn, and impulsive too... Heh, kinda like him now that he thought about it…  
that was probably part of why they where such a good team in the first place.  
Anyway, he noticed how Red lowered her head and let the Altean enter, still grumbling in annoyance.  
That was when everything went out of focus again, the corners of his vision darkened, slowly spreading until his vision was completely dark again and the sounds of the Hangar faded into the nothingness.

\------

Keith woke up with a gasp, sitting up and looking around hastily, checking for anything that could potentially harm him, the worry eased quickly though.

He was back in the forest…

He saw the sun dissapear behind the forest trees…  
He groaned as he began feeling his body ache again…  
His injuries throbbed with his heartbeat, almost making it unbearable, and now his head also joined the party-  
Damn, it's been a while since Red last done that…let him see through her eyes like that.  
As fascinating as it was, it was also freaking painful, at least to him... Red always said that it'll fade over time… but he wasn't feeling any of that-  
He sighed.

'Red?'

He asked in his mind, carefully trying to stand up.  
He leaned against a tree as he pulled himself up.

'are you okay?'

 

_Yes, come to me_

She replied, still a bit more harshly than usually…  
She was probably still salty about having to let this Altean fly her after what she'd done…  
Keith rolled his eyes at that.

'where are you?'

He asked as he began walking.

_Castle, I put up my barrier_

She replied with a huff, and Keith could see her already, sitting in the hangar, back turned towards him and her Aura a bit colder than usual.  
He knew though that Red didn't direct her anger at him directly, but she was frustrated and he understood her lack of self-control…  
He felt the same as they took her away from him…but not this time.

' stay where you are, I'm coming'

Worry suddenly flooded their bond, Red rumbling.

_You're hurt_

Keith nodded as he carefully made his way towards the castle in slow unsteady steps.

'I know…but I will not rest until I have you back…besides, didn't you just said you wanted me to come?'

he replied stubbornly.

His whole body hurt, it felt like he was on fire, and the pain didn't seem like it would be fading anytime soon, yet he wouldn't give up-

  
He arrived at the cliff again after a while, looking up to the castle…  
„Vrenneck"  
He mumbled as he realized that he most likely really wouldn't be able to get up there…  
He was too weak…  
He shook his head.  
„ I am not giving up" he mumbled, and tried anyway, digging his claws into the wall.  
He pulled himself up, using his pure power of will, but after a while of not really making much process he began loosing his hopes.  
He let out a frustrated groan, Red Replied with a worried rumble.

_Too weak_

She said, her voice softer than before.  
Keith huffed with a groan „ no shit" he mumbled…  
He looked up to the castle, frustration burning in his gut.  
He was so close, so Vrenneking close to finally reuniting with Red, and now?

_Rest?_

Red offered with a gentle rumble.  
Keith sighed…

  
She was right, there was no way of him getting up there on his own anytime soon and if he wouldn't do something about his wounds then he'd probably die out here quicker than one could say quiznak…-  
…  
…  
Altean swear words…he was using Altean swearwords-

„ huh, guess I'm really loosing my mind now" he mumbled to himself as he began walking back into the forest…  
He began looking for his pod- or well, his sad remains of a pod...

It took him a good amount of time and energy to find the pod again, it had stopped smoking and the smell of the forest covered up the pod perfectly-  
But he found it, it was still there (not that he expected anyone to want to steal this piece of crap anyway)

He climbed back into the battered cockpit, careful to not step into any glass shards that where still covering most of the ground.  
He looked around for his bag…the bag he completely forgot about earlier.  
He saw the familiar brown leather of it in the farthest corner of the cockpit.  
He walked over, lifting it up carefully.

He was relieved to see that it was still okay.  
He climbed back out of the pod, sitting down and leaning against it with a tired sigh.  
He closed his eyes for a moment, feeling the soft wind brush through his fur…

After staying still for another few minutes he sighed and opened his leather bag…  
There wasn't much left in it.  
Most of his things where stored in Red, who he couldn't reach right now-  
He cursed under his breath.  
All he had in his bag was a bit of money, a spare knife, and some bandages he had packed for emergencies…the rest of his first aid kit was in Red.  
He sighed, it was better than nothing.

He wasn't a master in wound care,  
He remembered being shown a few basics by a Galran freedom fighter a while ago…  
He cursed his forgetfulness sometimes-  
(Let's be honest though, he probably just wasn't listening to the doctor- thinking he didn't need it…big fucking mistake)  
So, with his blurry memory of the Rebel showing him how to bandage wounds in mind he began treating his own.  
The bandages ended up messy and maybe even a little bit too tight if the unpleasant pressure was any indication for that, yet he left it the way it was-  
It was good if it hurt…right?  
He could've sworn he heard a saying like that once…

He looked up to the sky.  
The sun has fully set, and the moon of Arus stood high above him, spending him at least a little bit of light.  
He decided to go back into his pod.  
It was safer in there.  
He carefully brushed the glass shards to the side so he could lay down and rest.  
He took off his long coat, laying it down onto the ground so he wouldn't freeze from the cold metal floor.  
His fur was keeping him relatively warm already so he wouldn't need a blanket or anything,  
besides, this planet's temperature was rather alright, not too warm and not too cold.

He laid down on his jacket, curling in on himself and just staring at the Pod's entrance…  
He was a bit nervous about the local wildlife though…  
He didn't know if there where any dangerous creature's around, and he found himself hiding his mother's blade under his large jacket...  
In case of an attack he would be able to quickly activate, and use it.  
Better safe than sorry.

He relaxed himself with the fact that he really wasn't a deep sleeper, he'd hear if something would try to sneak up on him…hopefully-

He sighed and eventually closed his eyes, listening to his surroundings.  
It was quiet…  
The longer the silence lasted, the calmer he became, and the more his tiredness caught up to him.  
He eventually gave in to it after trying to stay in his weird semi sleep for too long.  
He'd be okay…  
He'd be fine…  
Red purred in agreement.  
She would watch over him.  
He knew she would,  
She always did.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do you guys have any suggestions for future chapters?   
> Feel free to let me know! ^^


	3. Of traps and poor life decisions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith is being too curious once again and thus gets himself into trouble, but could it really have been avoided?  
> Probably not-
> 
> ___________________
> 
> Sorry for the long wait!  
> I had to rewrite this chapter since I didn't like the first version so... Here you go ^^

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also,  
> Thank you all so much for all the Kudos and comments!   
> I'm happy to hear that you like it!  
> (Especially since my English bis a bit...well, you know) X'D
> 
> Anyway, enjoy!

Morning came rather quickly.  
Keith really didn't feel like standing up at all,  
His muscles hurt like hell and he was pretty sure he felt at least one broken rib and his back felt stiff and sore (not that he was surprised seeing as he slept on the hard metal ground of his pod)  
He turned to his side, wincing slightly at his aching rib, and sighed as he looked out.  
The sun was already way up in the sky and Keith groaned.  
Half a day wasted by sleeping…nice.  
Well, he did feel better than yesterday so that was good.  
His thoughts trailed back to the events of the last days…  
His current situation wasn't exactly good but it wasn't terribly bad either,  
It was certainly easier getting Red back from a bunch of aliens and…an Altean than from a Galran cruiser.  
He still couldn't believe that there was actually an Altean there- sure the castle did look similar to the Altean technology he had seen in books before yet he would've never believed them to still be around…

Well, maybe she was the last one?

He shook his head, getting off topic here.  
Outsmarting these aliens won't be hard, the Altean is a whole different story though.  
He has heard of their strength, they may look weak but they sure as heck aren't and he was part of the race that destroyed Altea so she probably had a natural hate towards him…  
so he'd be better off avoiding her as good as possible.

He sighed once more and pushed himself up, wincing as his wound on his arm sent a stinging pain through the limb.  
It hurt worse that his broken rib and that alone was kinda strange…  
He had cuts like that before and they never felt that bad...  
Was the cut supposed to hurt worse?  
He carefully traced over the bandage and hissed as the wound sent another wave of pain through his arm...  
He felt fear crawl up his spine, spreading through his body…  
„ Relax, you're being paranoid again" he mumbled to himself as he stood up, ignoring his sore muscles.  
The feeling of unease never left him though...  
It felt wrong, something wasn't right...

He climbed out his pod and looked around tiredly.  
He yawned.  
It was easier keeping his balance again, the dizziness from yesterday was completely gone and he felt a bit stronger again…  
That was good he guessed.  
Maybe he'd soon be able to climb back up that stupid cliff and finally reunite with Red…  
Even though she was always there in the back of his mind he still missed her warm aura a lot…

One of his ears flicked backwards out of instinct and then a soft humming sound caught his attention.  
He turned around and looked up almost getting the heart attack of a lifetime as he saw the source of the sound.  
A gigantic Lion.  
At first Keith though it was the blue Lion he had seen yesterday but as he looked at it longer he noticed that it was smaller, almost exactly the same size as Red and instead of blue it was painted in a light green...

How many Vrenneking giant Robot lions where there  
He wondered as he watched the green lion in curiousity…  
He was able to feel it's aura, it's Quintessence…  
It was lively and interested, smart and friendly, completely different than Red's…  
He wondered if the green lion was sentient as well…  
Keith didn't know what to make out of the newfound information but he knew someone who might.

'Red?'

He asked, not looking away from the green lion.

_Yes?_

'Do you know anything about these other lions? I mean- I've never seen others before...'

Keith felt Red hesitate...  
She sent him a picture of a Hangar which he assumed was the one in this weird castle.  
She stood surrounded by four other lions, each different from one another.

_It feels like I know them but I can't remember…_

Keith frowned at Red's tone.  
She sounded sad, frustrated for not remembering much of her past anymore.  
Keith remembered how Red told him about the time she had spent with the Galra Empire before meeting him.  
She had told him that she couldn't remember anything other than being captive of the Empire but she knew that there was something in her past,  
That she had to remember.  
Eventually Red's memories seemed to come back, very slowly but they did.  
Keith remembered being woken up by an excited Red who had just remembered the person who had formerly piloted her.  
She seemed to remember more and more little details like that yet they seemed to have nothing in common with eachother…  
So far all she remembered was -like mentioned- her former ''paladin'' as Red had called him and that she was part of something big and important, what she couldn't remember.

Keith sighed and just kept on watching the green lion…  
He wondered what it was doing… he doubted that the lion and it's pilot just decided to have a little flight around cause why not-

He watched the lion for a while longer and it seemed to settle down only a little bit away from him.  
He felt a wave of curiousity wash over him... He could go and have a look at it.  
He shook his head, fighting against his own thoughts.  
He was not going to risk getting in trouble because he was curious besides, he was injured.  
He glanced back.  
But this might be the only chance to do so and maybe he'd find out who pilots it?  
And they're alone…probably…  
Just a peek?  
…  
He groaned.  
Who was he trying to lie to, of course he'll go and check it out and when he was already at it maybe he'd find something to eat and drink.  
He got his bag and threw it over his shoulder then he went back to get his mother's blade from under his jacket and put it back into its sheath on his belt.  
Red rumbled encouragingly in the back of his mind, she seemed to be curious herself.  
„ Alright, just a little peek" he told himself as he made his way towards where the lion had landed.

  
He snuck through the forest as quietly as he could.  
It where moments like that that he was thankful for knowing how to be stealthy.  
Usually he was more into attacking enemies directly but right now he couldn't afford to take on everything and everyone who crosses his path.  
He was still injured and the cut on his dominant arm was burning like hell…(Did it become worse?)  
So he was in a big disadvantage.

Suddenly a soft rustling of leaves caught his attention and he stopped, not moving a muscle.  
At first he thought it was a bird or something else that was local here but then a quiet voice added to the rustling and he looked to where it came from.  
He carefully backed away.  
He couldn't make out the words but his hope of it just being one of these Arusians was quickly destroyed as he stared back into a pair of deep blue eyes.

Oh, Vrennek.

There was another one of those Aliens standing in front of him, he had short brown hair and wore white armour.  
Keith backed away as his eyes landed on the gun the guy pointed at him.

„ Guys, I got him"  
The guy said into, what Keith assumed, was a com.

Keith's heart came to a stop as he heard the words leave the weird aliens mouth.  
Wait a moment…no.  
No no no no!- he did not just walk straight into a trap did he?  
He perked up as he heard more rustling around himself.  
He absolutely walked into a trap, well isn't that just great?  
He swallowed.  
Fighting was a bad idea, he was still weakened and had no chance against a Vrenneking group!  
He also only had his knifes (never bring a knife to a gunfight kids)  
So, as much as he hated it, he did the only thing he could, turn around and run-

Sadly he didn't get very far since his way was cut off by another one of the Aliens.  
This one he had met before, it was the small one with the glasses who was responsible for the cut on his arm.  
They held her weapon in their hand, walking towards him carefully.  
Keith backed up again, he already had enough trouble thanks to their last fight, he didn't need more if that.  
Suddenly he caught a glimpse of black from his left and yellow from his right.  
He was surrounded…great.  
He pulled out his blade from its sheath, his cut sending another nauseating wave of pain through his arm but he swallowed the wince that had threatened to escape.  
He wouldn't show weakness, especially not to them.  
They where closing in on him, he looked to his right where the one with the yellow armour was...

He was a good bit taller than him and held something like a blaster in his hands…  
Keith noticed that his hands where shaking and he seemed to have a very nervous body language in general…  
His ears flicked back, making sure the others couldn't sneak up while he concentrated on yellow.  
If he was fast then this might be his escape…  
He could try and outrun him, a growl could be enough to scare the poor guy enough to let him through-

„Now"

He heard a whisper from somewhere behind him, followed by a small clicking sound.  
He quickly spun around and his eyes widened as he saw the guy with white and blue armour point the gun at his chest.  
He was just fast enough to avoid  
The projectile that was shot at him by jumping to the side.  
He hissed at blue, pointing his blade towards him.  
where they actually trying to kill him? (Not that he'd be surprised-)  
This must've somehow alerted Red because she began rumbling in worry.  
Keith ignored her, he didn't need to worry her even more…  
He'd get out of this somehow, he's been in worse situations.

Keith took a deep breath, he looked over to the small Alien that had her weapon pointed at him…  
He looked at his knife and down to his bag…  
This might work…  
He quickly took his blade into his other hand and pulled out his spare knife.  
Without thinking much he threw it towards the small person with the green armour and a loud ''clack'' was heard, the sound of the knife hitting their chestplate.  
He couldn't swallow the small yelp he let out as another electrifying wave of pain shot through his entire arm after throwing the knife.

Keith wasn't a monster, he sure as hell wouldn't try to kill someone else, especially not if they're that much smaller than he was.

Green let out a startled yell as the knife collided with their chest which drew the attention of the remaining three towards them.

This was his chance-  
He launched himself at blue, kicking the gun out of his hands before running away, ignoring the painful throbbing of his wounds.

He heard the yelling behind him but ignored it, instead concentrating on not tripping over any roots or rocks.  
He didn't know where he was running but it didn't bother him, he just had to get away somehow, get somewhere safe.

He got out of the forest after a while and he could see the sun… it would only be a few more hours before it would get dark…  
He looked around,  
Before him laid a big clearing.  
His eyes caught a small river further ahead.  
The realisation of just how thirsty he really was hit him like a bolt of lightning.  
He didn't hesitate to jog over to the river and let himself collapse in front of it, panting in exhaustion from running.  
His chest felt like it was burning and he felt weirdly warm…

It was probably just because he ran so far…  
(He hoped at least)  
He looked back to the forest, there was no sign of his followers and he sighed in relief…  
He just hoped they'd leave him alone for now.  
He bowed down and drank some of the water…  
It felt amazing against his dry and hurting throat and cooled him down from the inside…  
He sighed softly and took a few deep breaths…  
His arm hurt a lot more than it had yesterday, even moving it felt like someone was stabbing it over and over again and throwing that knife back there sure as hell didn't help…  
He'd need to find a way to treat that soon.  
He stayed there for a while and silently hoped that the pain of his wounds would fade at least a little bit…

„hey!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope to upload the next chapter sooner!


	4. The chase goes on!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Okay, the first plan to catch their little intruder clearly didn't work but maybe the Paladins will succeed with their new plan? 
> 
> Keith, in the meantime, is not all to happy about the annoying Aliens still chasing him and tries his best to get them to leave him alone for once.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh? 3000 words???  
> Yeah- this chapter's a bit longer because I didn't want to split it in two xD 
> 
> Also, once again, thank you all so much for the Comments and Kudos! That means a lot to me and keeps me going! <3

Lance rapidly looked around for his Bayard which was forcibly kicked out of his grip.  
He quickly got hold of it again and immediately jumped back up and aimed into the direction the Galra had ran into, ignoring the throbbing of his hand.  
Lance narrowed his eyes, trying to find him but the blue paladin quickly noticed that the Galra was already gone.  
„Come back here!" He yelled in frustration.  
They've been searching for that Galra almost the whole morning (ok, technically it was Pidge who spent half the morning on strengthening their Radars so they could find the Galra at all)  
But still!  
He heard groaning from behind and turned around as he remembered how the Galra had thrown a knife at Pidge-  
He looked over to her and saw Shiro and Hunk kneeling beside her, and making sure she was okay.  
The smallest paladin sat up and looked around, there wasn't any blood on her but there was a dent in her chestplate…

Lance let out a sigh of relief as he saw that she was okay and that the knife had only hit her armour.  
He went over to the rest of his team.  
„ are you okay Lance?" Hunk asked worriedly, standing up and looking him over.  
Lance smiled at him and nodded „ I'm fine, the cat ran away though…he's quicker than I expected"  
He said while looking back to Shiro who was still kneeling beside Pidge.  
„ I didn't expect him to still be so fit either…not after that fall yesterday" Shiro mumbled in thoughts.  
Pidge immediately activated her radar, probably wanting to make out their intruders current location again.  
She managed to make little radar bracelets and even added a comm for everyone since they left the helmets back at the Castle, neither of them expected much of a fight from the Alien that apparently fell down a freaking cliff the other day but well, looks like they shouldn't have underestimated the Galra.

„ He's slower than before, he's probably getting exhausted" Pidge informed the others, letting Shiro pull her up to her feet again.  
„ So…that means it should be easier to catch him, right?" Lance asked with a raised eyebrow.  
Shiro shook his head with a frown „ I wouldn't be too sure about that, we need to be smarter about our next approach, surrounding him clearly didn't work…"

Lance nodded in understanding.  
„ Maybe we could pin him down? I'm sure if all of us keep him down we-"  
Pidge shook her head „ No, it's too risky. We don't know what other weapons he's hiding and he could very well be stronger than we expect…besides," she frowned slightly as she looked down.  
„ We wanted to make it as quick as possible, holding him down will only stress him out and make the risk of him injuring us higher"  
Pidge looked up again while readjusting her glasses.  
Lance nodded, she had a point.  
They don't say to never corner an injured animal without reason after all.  
Still, Lance found it amazing that neither Shiro nor Pidge seemed actually angry with their guest, especially since both of them would have every reason to hate the Galra more than anything with Pidge's family being in the Empire's clutches and Shiro having spent one year as their prisoner…  
Yet again, maybe judging someone by what the rest of their race has done was a bit naive… who knew? Maybe this guy was actually pretty nice?

Lance shook his head, the heck was he thinking- the guy was an enemy, Allura has made this clear as day.

„ Maybe we could ask him?" Hunk suggested with a shoulder shrug.  
„ Sure, and let him claw us to death- I mean, have you seen those claws???" Lance countered with a deep frown, Pidge nodded beside him and hummed seemingly in deep thoughts...  
„ Maybe…" she suddenly looked up with a grin „I've got it!" She exclaimed loudly while looking over to Shiro who gave her a small nod.  
Lance lifted an eyebrow and looked down to her in curiousity.  
The green paladin walked into the middle of their little circle and looked at everyone before beginning to explain.  
„ Okay, last time didn't work because he managed to attack one of us and thus all of us reacted and got distracted,"  
She looked around as if to make sure everyone understood, then she continued.  
„ My idea would be to use exactly that to our advantage, I thought that Shiro and I could distract him while Lance and Hunk stun him from afar"  
She finished with a proud smile.  
„ I like that idea" Hunk stuttered quickly, Lance nodded in agreement.  
Shiro looked towards where the Galra had dissapeared to „Okay, let's better hurry then"  
He said to his team, the other three agreeing with determined expressions.  
„Let's catch that stray cat!"

**-Time skip-**

It didn't take them as long as Pidge would've expected to find their runaway Galra.  
Shiro and she where hiding behind a few trees and bushes, carefully watching the Galra.  
He was kneeling in front of a small river on a clearing, panting in exhaustion, he probably made a pause to drink something...  
Pidge knew that he was technically the enemy and all but she couldn't help but feel some sort of pity for him…  
Yes, sure, he threw a knife at her and attacked Lance after having snuck into the Castle somehow for god knows what reason - (man, sounds worse if you list all the things up)  
But that small moment in which he looked at her before he threw his knife, she didn't see aggression or anger like in the Galra on Sendak's ship, no,  
It was more of a mixture of pure desperation, exhaustion and fear.

She looked up to Shiro who took a deep breath.  
„ Lance, are you in position?" Shiro asked quietly through their com.  
Lance answered rather quickly „ yep, we're all set"  
Shiro hummed in acknowledgement.  
„ Alright, then let's get him" Shiro whispered.  
The black paladin looked down to Pidge again and she nodded in determination, letting him know that she was ready.  
After another deep breath they made their way out of their hiding spot and on to the clearing.

Pidge looked forward „Hey!" She yelled to catch the Galra's attention and it worked.  
His ears flicked and he looked up towards them, ears immediately tilting back in what she believed was meant to be a threatening gesture.  
He jumped up and snarled at them, hair/fur fluffing up in agitation and claws drawn ( jeez, Lance was right, they where sharp-)  
She subconsciously let her hand hover where her Bayard was and she could see how tense Shiro was beside her, understandably, the Galra was unpredictable as they had experienced earlier.  
Slowly they continued to walk towards him.  
„We just want to talk" she said loudly so she could be heard.  
The Galra shot her a mistrustful glare and shook his head at that „Yeah sure" he replied with a huff, baring his teeth.  
„Look, we just want to know what you where doing in the Castle" Shiro continued.  
Pidge nodded, ignoring the fact that that was just part of what they actually wanted…she felt kinda bad for having to lie actually-  
The Galra glared at Shiro for a short while before answering.  
„None of your business"

Pidge heard Lance count down through their Comm., and as he was at one he took the shot.  
The Galra flinched and turned around, with a vicious hiss on his lips.  
„Shit- guys, I think I missed" Lance said through the comms and Pidge snorted at that.  
„You think?" She replied while keeping a steady eye on the Galra who backed away from them, probably to make a run for it.  
Shiro was quick to cut off the Aliens desired direction but The Galra was having none of it, he lashed out with his claws and Shiro managed to avoid the attack only closely.  
Pidge roller her eyes and groaned as she activated her Bayard and jogged towards them, so much to making it quick.  
„ I'll try to shoot him again" Lance said hurriedly,  
„ Just be careful that you don't stun Shiro on accident!" Hunk answered in worry, voice shaky.  
Pidge hummed in agreement while watching the fight before her.  
Shiro lunged forward trying to attack but the Galra dodged and within seconds had his strange blade in his left hand again.  
Pidge quickly attacked from behind with her grappling hook, letting it wrap around his wrist and pulling.  
The Galra let out a startled noise and stumbled backwards, blade falling out of his hand.  
He looked at his wrist and began to try and pry off the grappling hook.  
He quickly noticed that it wouldn't work and instead focused on Pidge, he snarled at her and with a speed the green paladin hadn't expected lunged forward, managing to scratch her on her stomach.  
Pidge yelled in a mixture of suprise and pain but she didn't let go of the Galra's wrist.  
And then suddenly the panicked tearing on her grappling hook stopped and she saw how the Galra stopped thrashing all together, falling to his side with nothing more than a weak hiss.  
„Ha! Got 'em!" Lance cheered through their comms.  
Pidge sighed in relief and let her Bayard shrink back into it's natural form.  
„ Pidge! Are you okay?" Shiro asked worriedly, quickly running over to her and kneeling down beside her.

Pidge managed a nod and looked down, she was Glad to see that her wounds were just superficial,  
They almost looked like extra long cat scratches but nothing more- the Galra really had it with her today huh?  
„ it's not deep, I'm good" she told Shiro before pushing herself up, wincing slightly as the paper cut thin scratches stretched.

Shiro shot her a worried look and hesitated before sighing deeply and accepting her answer.  
„ Okay, if anything changes you'll let me know immediately" he told her, standing up again.

Pidge rolled her eyes at Shiro's overprotectiveness, and just nodded „ I will" she promised quickly.  
She sighed in relief, finally they had managed to catch him… sure, it wasn't as elegant and fast as she would've liked but she wouldn't complain.  
Pidge suddenly heard Lance and Hunk speaking from somewhere beside her, their voices growing in volume ( one can't just overhear Lance's bragging about actually Having hit the Galra…that's the first target he actually hit on purpose since they arrived-)

„You okay, Pidge?" Hunk asks immediately as he and Lance had made it to the two.  
Pidge nodded „ Just a few scratches, they'll heal" she answered swiftly.  
„ so… and now?" Lance asked after a small pause, arms crossed and foot hitting the floor.  
„ we'll bring him back to the castle" Shiro answered, kneeling down and lifting up the Galra with ease.  
„ what? We're gonna have to walk all the way back?" Hunk whined.  
„Urghhh…" Lance uttered at the realisation of how far away they actually where from the Castle now…  
„ well, better start walking then" Shiro stated, already beginning to walk back towards the castle.  
Pidge looked at the other two Paladins and shrugged her shoulders before following their leader.  
With a deep sigh Lance and Hunk did the same, hoping that the way back wouldn't be too long…

**-Time Skip-**

As they had finally reached Green they where able to fly back the rest of the way, which everyone was unbelievably thankful for, especially Lance and Hunk.

Pidge landed her lion in the castles hangar, Green purring in the back of her head.  
It was still strange for her to constantly have Green in the back of her mind though it wasn't the bad kind of strange…Pidge really enjoyed the Lion's company as she was sure the other paladins did too...  
Everyone was still in the process of meeting and bonding with their lions, they have only met after all.  
Pidge was already quite close to Green, they bonded over their shared curiosity and sense of adventure and even shared some memories already.

Green gently lowered her head, allowing the paladins to exit the giant robot Lion.  
Pidge wasn't suprised to find Allura and Coran already waiting for them.  
„Mission accomplished" Lance Grinned triumphant.  
Allura gave them a relived smile.  
„ Good job paladins!" The princess praised, clapping her hands together before approaching Shiro who was still carrying the Galra.  
Allura looked their intruder over, her eyes hardening.  
„Get him to our holding cell- "  
„wait! Shouldn't we let Coran look him over first?" Pidge begann,  
„ He could have some serious injuries from his fall"  
Allura seemed to think about it for a moment… she sighed after a short while and gave them a small approving hand gesture.  
„ Fine, but we'll lock him up after" she insisted eagerly.  
Shiro nodded dutifully, making his way towards the door already.  
Allura sighed and followed him in a quick pace, as did the others.

It didn't take long before they arrived at the Med bay.  
Shiro walked over to one of the cots, laying their intruder down on it.  
He then turned to Pidge and put his hands to his hips.  
„ Coran? Would also have a look at Pidge's scratches?" He asked, looking up to the royal advisor.  
„ scratches?" Allura asked with a raised eyebrow, walking over to the smallest paladin with a frown.  
Pidge rolled her eyes and lifted her hands „Relax, they're just scratches! They aren't even deep"  
She argued, crossing her arms.

„Very well" Coran agreed, twirling his moustache between his fingers „I can have a look at the both of you, but I would care for our guest first, I don't know how long he'll stay unconscious. Is that alright with you Number four?"

Pidge nodded and was about to voice her agreement but Allura interrupted her „Wait, did he do this to you?" The princess asked, her voice taking on a dangerous tone that sent shivers down Pidge's spine.  
The silence seemed to be proof enough for Allura and she shot a demanding glare towards Coran who straightened up visibly.  
„Pull his claws" she ordered sharply and suddenly the room was tense, some of the paladins exchanging unsure glances.  
„what? Don't you think this goes a step too far?" Pidge asked with her hands on her hips.  
Allura didn't look at the smallest paladin  
„This is an order, not a suggestion" she said sternly before stomping out of the room angrily.

Coran sighed loudly as he watched the Princess leave, he knew how deep the pain of the past ran in her veins, how painful it is to just wake up again and realize that one's race has been dead for so long…  
Yet he couldn't let out his anger, his sadness and frustration on someone who has little to nothing to do with what happened so long ago…  
It wasn't hard to see that their little Galra wasn't that old yet, Coran would even go so far to say that he was still a child or like the Galra would say a Kit or a cub.

„We aren't seriously going to do what Allura wants…right?" Pidge asks suddenly, hastily looking around.

Hunk and Lance seemed uncertain, not sure if they wanted to go against the Princess' order ( which Pidge couldn't blame them for, Allura was scary if angry) she looked up to Shiro who nodded.

„We won't, her anger is controlling her, she doesn't know what she's doing" he said, looking up to Coran.  
„ I hope you're on our side there, Coran"  
The Advisor nodded enthusiastically „Of course I am, number 1!" The Altean hurried over to the Galra and hummed „ we won't pull anything, yet we could cut them" he offered.  
„ it won't hurt him and isn't as cruel...sure, his pride might suffer a tad but otherwise it should be fine"

Shiro gave him a nod, feeling better with just doing that instead.  
He was glad that Coran was on their side on this one, the Man had a great sense of morality and that Shiro admired.

Coran smiled at them before beginning to Examine their intruder, making sure that he wouldn't miss anything that could potentially be harmful to the Kit.  
He scanned the Galra for any injuries he could've gotten from the fall…  
It was obvious to him relatively quickly that he would put the Galra into a healing pod for sure,  
Most wound where superficial and wouldn't cause too much discomfort yet he had reason to believe that the Kit had a concussion and after some further investigation he also stumbled upon an infected wound on his right arm…  
This did explain the fever he had noticed earlier.

After taking care of the worst of the wounds and cutting the claws, like he had said to do, he got the other paladins to help him get the Kit into a healing pod, he sighed in relief afterwards, glad that the Galra hasn't woken up during the Exam.  
„Alright, now we only have to wait a bit" he informed, turning back to the paladins.  
„ alright number 4, let's take care of those wounds of yours!" Coran announced and led Pidge to one of the cots.  
The green paladin nodded and climbed up the Cot.  
The Altean advisor swiftly went over and ripped open Pidge's undersuit a bit so he could look at the wounds.  
„ they are…surprisingly light, claws like the ones of a Galra could've gone a lot deeper…" he mused, twirling his moustache between his fingers in thought, he then looked up and rushed over to a shelf, getting out a little tube and handing it to Pidge with a smile.  
„Here, put this on the wounds and they should heal faster"  
Pidge took the medication and smiled at Coran, jumping down the cot again.  
„ Oh! And remind me to fix that undersuit of yours tomorrow" Coran reminded.  
„will do" Pidge promised, walking over to the other paladins.  
„You should get some rest" Coran told them and Shiro agreed immediately, getting exhausted from all this chasing.  
„ that's a good idea…see you tomorrow, Coran"  
The Altean just waved after them as they all mumbled their seperate 'good night's'

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... Yeah-  
> I'm sorry for the slow updates-  
> I have exams next month so school's pretty much killing me rn :'D 
> 
> Btw- Pidge is number 4 atm since Keith isn't actually in the team yet ^v^ 
> 
> I hope I can update again soon though!


End file.
